DOCKETED  
Docket Number:  20-AAER -02 
Project Title:  Air Filters  
TN #:  242444  
Document Title:  Notice of Proposed Action (NOPA) for Air Filters regulation  
Description:  N/A 
Filer:  Alex Galdamez  
Organization:  California Energy Commission  
Submitter Role:  Commission Staff   
Submission Date:  3/24/2022 9:46:52 AM  
Docketed Date:  3/24/2022  
 STATE OF CALIFORNIA —  NATURAL RESOURCES AGENCY              Gavin Newsom, Governor  
 
CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION   
715 P  Street  
Sacramento, California 95814  
 
energy.ca.gov  
 
CEC- 057 (Revised 1/ 21)
NOTICE OF PROPOSED ACTION  
2021 Appliance Efficiency Rulemaking for Air Filters  
Docket No. 20-AAER -02 
Notice Published on  March 25, 2022 
INTRODUCTION 
Notice is hereby given that t he California Energy Commission (CEC) proposes to 
adopt changes to the air filter  regulations contained in the California Code of 
Regulations (CCR), Title 20  (the “Proposed Action”) , after considering all comments, 
objections, and recommendations regarding the Proposed Action.    
PUBLIC HEARING  The CEC staff will hold a public hearing for the proposed regulations at the date and 
time listed below. Interested persons, or their authorized representative, may present statements, arguments, or contentions relevant to the proposed regulations at the public hearing. The record for this hearing will be kept open until every person present at the conclusion of staff’s presentation has had an opportunity to provide c omment.  
Tuesda y May 10, 2022 
10:00 a.m. (Pacific Time)  
 
BUSINESS MEETING   
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE  that the CEC will consider and possibly adopt the proposed 
regulations at a CEC Business Meeting at the date and time listed below. Interested persons, or their authorized representative, may present statements, arguments, or contentions relevant to the proposed regulations at the Business Meeting. If the date, time, place, or nature of the proposed adoption changes, the CEC will provide updated information in the rulemaking docket.  
 
        
Wednesday, July 13, 2022  
10:00 a.m. (Pacific Time)  
 
The public hearing will be held remotely, consistent with AB 361 (Rivas, Stats. 2021, ch. 165, §2) to improve and enhance public access to state and local agency meeting s 
during the COVID- 19 pandemic and future emergencies by allowing broader access 
through teleconferencing options . Instructions for remote participation for the public 
hearing are below.   
2 REMOTE ATTENDANCE  
The public hearing may be accessed by clicking the Zoom link below or visiting 
Zoom  at https://join.zoom.us  and entering the ID and password below. If you experience 
difficulties  joining, you may contact Zoom at (888) 799- 9666 ext. 2, or the Office of the Public 
Advisor, Energy Equity and Tribal Affairs at  publicadvisor@energy.ca.gov  or by phone at (916) 
654-4489 or toll free at (800) 822- 6228  
 
URL:  https://energy.zoom.us/j/91545828462?pwd=dXlhSmEvMmw0R1NxN0RwcWlRd
Gt0dz09  
Webinar ID: 915 4582 8462  
Passcode: 847325  
 To participate by telephone dial (213) 338- 8477 or 1- 888-475-4499 (tol l free). When 
prompted, enter the Webinar ID and password listed above. To comment or ask a question over the telephone, dial *9 to “raise your hand” and *6 to mute/unmute your phone line.  
PUBLIC ADVISOR 
The CEC’s Office of the  Public  Advisor,  Energy Equity and Tribal Affairs  provides the 
public assistance in participating in CEC proceedings. For information on participation 
or to request interpreting services or reasonable accommodations, reach out via email 
at publicadvisor@energy.ca.gov
, by phone at (916) 654- 4489, or toll free at (800) 822-
6228. Requests for interpreting services and reasonable accommodations should be made at least five days in advance. The CEC will work diligently to accommodat e all 
requests.  
 Zoom: If you experience difficulties with the Zoom platform, please contact the Office of the Public  Advisor,  Energy Equity and Tribal Affairs  via email or phone . 
MEDIA INQUIRIES  
Direct media inquiries to the Media and Public Communications Office to (916) 654-4989 or  mediaoffice@energy.ca.gov
. 
 PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD  
The written public comment period for the Proposed Action  will be held from March 25 , 
2022,  through May 9, 2022. Any interested person, or their authorized representative, 
may submit written comments to the CEC for consideration on or prior to May 9 , 2022. 
The CEC  appreciates  receiving written comments at the earliest possible date.  
Comments sub mitted outs ide this comment period are considered untimely. CEC may, 
but is not required to, respond to untimely comments, including those raising significant environmental issues.  
 Written and oral comments, attachments, and associated contact information (including address, phone number, and email address) will become part of the public record of this proceeding with access available via any internet search engine.  3  
The CEC encourages use of its electronic commenting system. Visit the e- commenting 
page at https://www.energy.ca.gov/rules -and-regulations/appliance- efficiency -
regulations -title-20/appliance- efficiency -proceedings -0 which links to the comment 
page for this docket. Enter your contact information and a comment title describing the subject of your comment(s). Comments may be included in the “Comment Text” box or attached as a downloadable, searchable document consistent with  Title 20, California 
Code of Regulations , Section 1208.1. The maximum files size allowed is 10 MB.  
 Written comments may also be submitted by email. Include docket number 20 -AAER -
02 in the subject line and email to docket@energy.ca.gov
.  
 A paper copy may be sent to:  
California Energy Commission  
Docket Unit  
Docket No. 20-AAER-02 
715 P  Street, MS -4 
Sacramento, CA 95814 
 
Pursuant to California Code of Regulations Title 20, Section 1104(e), any person may 
make oral comment on any agenda item at the July 13 , 2022, Business Meeting.  
Please consult the public agenda, which will be posted ten days before the Ju ly 13, 
2022, Bus iness Meeting, for important details.  
  
To ensure you receive notice of any changes to the proposed regulations in this proceeding, please follow the instructions provided at the end of this notice to join the proceeding list serve or provide a valid email  or mailing address with your comments  
STATUTORY AUTHORITY AND REFERENCE  
Public Resources Code Sections 25213, 25218(e), and 25402(c) authorize the CEC to 
adopt rules or regulations, as necessary, to implement, interpret, and make specific 
Public Resources Code Sections 25402(c) and 25216.5(d).  
INFORMATIVE DIGEST/POLICY STATEMENT OVERVIEW  
The Warren- Alquist Act establishes the CEC as California’s primary energy policy and 
planning agency. Sections 25213, 25218(e), and 25402(c) of the Public Resources Code mandate and/or authorize that the CEC  adopt rules and regulations, as 
necessary, to reduce the inefficient consumption of energy and water by prescribing efficiency standards and other cost -effective measures , including energy consumption 
marking , for appliances whose use requires a significant amount of energy or water 
statewide.  
 4 One of the ways the CEC satisfies this requirement is through the Appliance Efficiency 
Regulations, Title 20, Sections 1601- 1609, which contain definitions, test procedures, 
efficiency standards, and marking and certification requirements for state and f ederally  
regulated appliances. Further, the regulations require that appliance manufacturers certify to the CEC that their products meet all applicable state and Federal appliance efficiency regulations before their products can be included in the CEC’s Modernized 
Appliance Efficiency Database System (MAEDbS) of appliances approved to be sold or offered for sale within California.  
 In 2016, the CEC learned that manufacturer s of air filters were concerned about 
certain testing requirements  regarding  what size filters must be used in the relevant 
test procedures . The regulations , which required manufacturers to test “large, ” 
“medium ,” and “small” air filters,  were meant to provide manufacturers flexibility when 
conducting required tests . However, manufacturers expressed concerns that they 
lacked adequate guidance on how to identify and select which air filter sizes were 
required to be tested. Further, manufacturers expressed co ncerns that it was unclear 
how to apply the test results from the small, medium, and large air filters to the rest of the manufacturers’ air filters in the same product family. Manufacturers voiced their 
concern that the lack of an industry standard or acc urate method to scale test results 
to different filter sizes made it impossible for manufacturers to consistently comply with the testing, marking, and certification requirements for air filters. These concerns were not raised during the original rulemaking ; rather, they only  became evident after the 
regulations were adopted.  
 On August 9, 2017, in response to these concerns, the CEC adopted emergency 
regulations to change the effective date by which air filters sold or offered for sale in California must comply with testing, marking, and certification requirements. These emergency regulations changed t he effective date for these requirements from July 1, 
2016, to the new effective date of April 1, 2019. This new effective date provided the 
CEC some additional time to collaborate with stakeholders to study, address, and 
resolve manufacturers’ concerns with the existing testing r equirements, while allowing 
manufacturers to continue to supply air filters to the California market. The rulemaking clarifying the test, certification, and marking requirements was not completed within 
the allotted time frame of one- year, and as a result,  the standard reverted to the 
original regulation.  Ultimately, CEC staff concluded  the regulations should be 
amended to be more specific with respect to different air filter sizes needed for testing 
and certification.  
 In this rulemaking, the CEC proposes to update the testing, certification, and marking requirements for air filters , addressing the concerns discussed above. The CEC 
proposes modif ying the existing scope for air filters to clarify that only air filters for 
ducted systems are covered by the regulation. The CEC also proposes to update the 
test procedures to the most recent iterations of the American National Standards 
Institute/A merican Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air -Conditioning Engineers 
Standard 52.2- 2017 and the Air -Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute 
Standard 680 (I -P)-2017 test methods. The proposed regulation allows the size of the 5 filter used for testing to be chosen by the manufacturer as the basic model for the filter 
family. The certification and marking requi rements have been updated to be consistent 
with test procedures described above.  
Difference from existing comparable federal regulation or statute  
The CEC has determined that there are no existing comparable federal regulations or 
statutes and there are no relevant Federal Trade Commission marking  requirements 
for air filters.  
Broad objectives of the regulations and the specific benefits anticipated by the proposed amendments  
The broad objective of the regulat ions is to carry out the CECs statutory mandate to 
reduce the wasteful, uneconomic, inefficient, or unnecessary consumption of energy  
by updat ing the testing, certification, and marking requirements for air filters , which 
CEC staff project will lead to greater efficiency savings . 
 
The specific benefits of the proposed regulations are  modification s to the existing 
standards that will allow manufacturers to certify all sizes of air filters to the CEC. The 
modification will also enable consumers to purchase the correct air filter that is 
compatible with ducted forced- air heating or cooling systems.  Although this regulation 
is not one which introduces an efficiency standard, it provides the necessary information, through database certification and pro duct marking , for consumers to 
acquire an efficient air filter for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. Since the air filter accounts for one  percent of the total efficiency of an  HVAC 
system, CEC staff calculate a total energy savings of approximately 30 GWh/year of 
electricity and 5.5 million therms of natural gas.  
Determination of inconsistency or incompatibility with existing state regulations  
The CEC has conducted an evaluati on for any other regulations in this topic area and 
found, e ffective July 1, 2014, the 2013 Building Energy Efficiency Standards (Energy 
Code) in Title 24, Part 6 of the California Code of Regulations began requiring the installation of air filters in newl y constructed homes and certain alterations to 
residential HVAC systems, which were marked by the manufacturer to indicate particulate filtration efficiency and pressure drop. Beginning  July 1, 2016, air filters sold 
or offered for sale in California must be certified to the CEC and marked by the 
manufacturer to indicate particulate filtration efficiency and pressure drop. These Title 20 regulations are intended to harmonize with, and complement, the Energy Code in Title 24. Therefore, the CEC has determined that the proposed regulations are neither 
inconsistent nor incompatible with existing state regulations .  
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE  
The CEC pr oposes to incorporate by reference the following  documents :  
 
AHRI Standard 680 (I -P) 2017 Standard for Performance Rating of Residential Air 
Filter Equipment  (AHRI 680 -2017)  6 ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 52.2 -2017 Method of Testing General Ventilation Air -
Cleaning Devices for Removal Efficiency by Particle Size (ANSI/ASHRAE 52.2 -2017)  
All documents are available for review at the CEC located at 715 P Street, 
Sacramento, CA., 95814 and on the CEC website found at https://efiling.energ y.ca.gov/Lists/DocketLog.aspx?docketnumber=20- aaer-02
  
MANDATED BY FEDERAL LAW OR REGULATIONS  
None.  
OTHER STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS  
None.  
FISCAL IMPACTS   
The CEC has made the following initial determinations:  
• Mandate on local agencies and school districts:  None 
• Cost to any local agency or school district requiring reimbursement pursuant to 
17500 et seq. : None 
• Cost or savings to any state agency: No ne 
• Non-discretionary cost or savings imposed upon local agencies: No ne 
• Cost or savings in federal funding to the state:  None 
SIGNIFICANT EFFECT ON HOUSING COSTS  
None.  
SIGNIFICANT STATEWIDE ADVERSE ECONOMIC IMPACT DIRECTLY 
AFFECTING BUSINESS, INCLUDING ABILITY OF CALIFORNIA BUSINESSES TO COMPETE WITH BUSINESSES IN OTHER STATES  
The CEC has made the initial determination that the proposed regulations will not  have 
an adverse economic impact directly affecting business, including  the ability of 
California businesses to compete with businesses in other states.  
 The CEC proposes to update the testing, certification, and marking requirements for air filters. The CEC has modified the existing scope for air filters to clarify that onl y air 
filters for ducted systems are covered by the regulation. The CEC also proposes to 
update the test procedures to the most recent iterations of the American National 
Standards Institute/ American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air -Conditioning 
Engineers Standard 52.2- 2017 and the Air -Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration 
Institute Standard 680 (I -P)-2017 test methods. The proposed regulation allows the 
size of the filter used for testing to be chosen by the manufacturer as the basic model 
for the filter family. The certification and marking requirements have been updated to 
specify requirements based on the test procedure used for testing. The CEC has 
calculated a $0.03 incremental cost per filter to businesses to implement the air filter marki ng requirement.  
 7 Under the A ppliance Efficiency Regulations, retailers are responsible for ensuring that 
the regulated products they sell are certified to the CEC and appear in the MAEDbS 
before they are sold or offered for sale in California. T he CEC assumes that retailers 
will experience some minimal additional cost associated with checking MAEDbS to 
ensure that what they sell are certified to the CEC and appear in the MAEDbS and are 
therefore compliant and lawful to sell in the state.  
RESULTS OF THE EC ONOMIC IMPACT ANALYSIS/ASSESSMENT  
The CEC concludes that: (1) the proposal will not create jobs within California, (2) the 
proposal will not eliminate jobs within California, (3) the proposal will not create new 
businesses in California, (4) the proposal will not eliminate existing businesses within 
California, and (5) the proposal will not result in the expansion of businesses currently 
doing business within the state.  
The benefit of the proposed regulations are modifications  to address the unclear 
certification requirements for air filters by updating the testing, certification and 
marking requirements to allow manufacturers  flexibility when conducting the required 
tests for certification. Although this regulation is not one which introduces an efficiency 
standard, it provides the necessary information, through database certification and product  marking , for consumers to acquire an efficient air filter for heating, ventilation, 
and air conditioning (HV AC) systems.  
The proposed modification to the current air filter standards will lead to improved efficiency of HVAC systems for California residents, as well as energy and energy bill savings. This energy savings translates to fewer power plants built and less pressure 
on the limited energy resources, land, and water use associated with energy production. In addition, lower electricity consumption results in reduced greenhouse gas and criteria pollutant emissions, primarily from lower generation in hydrocar bon-
burning power plants, such as natural gas power plants .  
The proposed regulation will not adversely affect the health and welfare of California 
residents, worker safety, or the state’s environment.  
COST IMPACTS ON REPRESENTATIVE PERSON OR BUSINESS  
The CEC is not aware of any cost impacts that a representative private person or 
business would necessarily incur in reasonable compliance with the Proposed Action.   
 
The CEC is proposing regulatory amendm ents to address the concerns expressed by 
manufacturers regarding the testing, certification, and marking requirements for air filters. The proposed updates to the regulations will clarify the testing, certification, and marking requirements for air filter s. The proposed regulations provide consumers with 
information regarding replacement air filter pressure drop performance. This 
information allows the consumer to better  match a replacement air filter with an  HVAC 
system specification to run the system eff iciently and prevent equipment damage.  8 BUSINESS REPORT  
The regulations  continue with a require d reporting requirement for manufacturers of air 
filters . 
 
State law (Public Resources Code Section 25402(c)(1)) requires manufacturers to certify to the CEC  that their appliances comply with the applicable  standard by 
certifying appliances  to the C EC’s Modernized Appliance Efficiency Database System 
(MAEDbS)  to confirm compliance with the applicable standards  and requirements , and 
to collect information to aid in the modification of existing or the adoption of new 
standards . MAEDbS is used by manufacturers and maintained by the CEC to list the 
appliances authorized to be sold or offered for sale in California. This is necessary to help the CEC and consumers verify compliance with applicable federal and state 
efficiency standards  and other requirements . Some retailers may choose to act as a 
manufacturer when they rebrand a product and assume the certification burden for that model.  
 It is necessary for the health, safety, or welfare of the people of the state, that these regulations, which require a report, apply to businesses.  
EFFECT ON SMALL BUSINESS  
The proposed regulations may affect small business. However, the CEC is not aware of any significant cost impacts that a small business would incur in reasonable compliance with the Proposed Action.  
CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVES  
In accordance with Government Code Section 11346.5, subdivision (a)(13), the C EC 
must determine that no reasonable alternative considered by the agency, or that has otherwise been identified and brought to the attention of the agency, would be more effective in carrying out the purpose for which the action is proposed, would be as effective and less burdensome to affected private persons than the Proposed Action;  
or would be more cost -effective to a ffected private persons and equally effective in 
implementing the statutory policy or other provision of law.  
CONTACT PERSON  
Questions  should be addressed to:  
Corrine Fishman,  Regulations Manager  
 Efficiency Division  
715 P  Street  
Sacramento, CA 95814  
(916)  805-7452  
Corrine.Fishman@energy.ca.gov
 
 
Or: 
Alejandro Galdamez, P.E.  
Efficiency Division  9 (916) 237- 2550  
alejandro.galdamez@energy.ca.gov   
 
COPIES OF THE INITIAL STATEMENT OF REASONS, THE EXPRESS TERMS, 
AND RULEMAKING FILE  
The CEC will have the entire rulemaking file available for inspection and copying 
throughout the rulemaking process at its office at the above address. As of the dat e 
this notice is published in the Notice Register, the rulemaking file consists of this notice, the express terms, the Initial Statement of Reasons (ISOR)  and any documents 
relied upon. Copies may be obtained by contacting Corrine Fishman above or 
accessed through the CEC website at  
https://efiling.energy.ca.gov/Lists/DocketLog.aspx?docketnumber=20- aaer-02
  
 
AVAILABILITY OF CHANGES TO ORIGINAL PROPOSAL FOR AT LEAST 15 DAYS PRIOR TO AGENCY ADOPTION/REPEAL/AMENDMENT OF RESULTING REGULATIONS  
 Participants should be aware that any of the proposed regulations could be changed 
because of  public comment, staff recom mendation, or recommendations from 
Commissioners. Moreover, changes to the proposed regulations not indicated in the express terms could be considered if they improve the clarity or effectiveness of the regulations. If the CEC  considers changes to the proposed regulations pursuant to 
Government Code Section 11346.8, a full copy of the text will be available for review at least 15 days prior to the date on which the CEC adopts or amends the resulting 
regulations.  
COPY OF THE FINAL STATEMENT OF REASONS  
At the conclusion of the rulemaking, persons may obtain a copy of the Final Statement 
of Reasons (FSOR), once it has been prepared, by visiting the CEC website at https://efiling.energy.ca.gov/Lists/DocketLog.aspx?docketnumber=20- aaer-02
 or 
contacting the contact person listed above.  
AVAILABILITY OF DOCUMENTS ON THE INTERNET  
The CEC maintains a website to facilitate public access to documents prepared and 
considered as part of this rulemaking proceeding. Documents prepared by the CEC for 
this rulemaking  have been posted on our website at 
https://efiling.energy.ca.gov/Lists/DocketLog.aspx?docketnumber=20- aaer-02. 
 
INSTRUCTIONS FOR RECEIVING NOTICES AND DOCUMENTS IN THIS PROCEEDING  
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which can be accessed here: 
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